Potions Master Down
by The Muses
Summary: Yay, my favorite story now has chapter four! Something odd happens when the seventh years have to do their potions project... And, Hermione has to help... watch out, Potions Master down! ...
1. Chapter one

Potions Master Down  
  
~*~  
  
By Mae Noelle  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer -- I don't own a thing. In this story. Nope, though it is brilliantly written to fool you all, this actually belongs to a more brilliant author, JKR, to whom I am indebted with my life. All praise JKR!  
  
Summary -- Oh my GOSH! Yes! I know just EXACTLY what you are thinking! Oh, no, can this be another cliché stupid retardedly written foolish fast- moving all-sex un-creative Herm/mini-snape youth potion story?! Well, I am afraid it just might be. With the exception of the sex. Yes, so all you perverted people out there, begone. *Watches as 99% of people walk away* No! Come back! I was just joking!  
  
Authors Note -- *begins with droll, usual, unchanging beginning to all fanfics she writes* This story is thanks to the magical, amazing muse Duck- WAIT A MINUTE! Guess what, everyone! I am actually writing this story by myself so far! Yes, I know what you are thinking! 'This won't last long..' . And, you are probably right. Ducky, my magical muse, is the essential being to every creative plot in the world, which is why so far she isn't here. Uncreative plot-line. But once it starts being creative, I assure you, Ducky is behind it all. (Don't worry though, I promise it is still good! She did read over this and approve, so I promise it is good)  
  
~*~  
  
Chapter one  
  
~*~  
  
Severus Snape sat stiffly in the chair by his desk, his arms folded and almost lost in the many folds of his draping black robe, and waited impatiently for the seventh year Gryffindors and Slytherins ready themselves for the beginning of potions class.  
  
The noisy students entered one by one, hushing almost instantaneously after reaching a certain distance from their silent and brooding Potions Professor, otherwise of whom they paid no attention.  
  
Severus taped his fingers slightly on his arm, leaning back in his chair and tilting his head up slightly, narrowing his eyes and emanating a more prominent evilness which caused the students to magically find their way to their seats faster.  
  
Once everyone had reached their spots, and had taken out the stack of parchments which had been due of them this very morning, Severus stood effortlessly, and glided his way to the front of the room, his arms still folded.  
  
"I trust every," He moved his gaze across the first row of Gryffindors, undoubtedly sending shivers up the spines of the more weak ones, and maybe more for Longbottom, "Single," He moved his gaze onto Potter, Weasely, and Granger, who all had on looks indifference. "One of you," His gaze swept over the remaining class. "Has brought in your reports, finished, on how to make your seventh year potions project." He paced slowly before the front tables. "I need not add that you must have every single piece of information needed to complete your project, including your list of ingredients needed and exactly how much used, in what order, what time of day and every other detail. I dare say you all remember you are to make an antidote for your potion as well?" He sneered and brought his glare down onto Longbottom, who was whimpering and leafing through his papers rapidly. "So I would document everything very well, if you wish to pass potions class your last year at Hogwarts.  
  
"As your final and most important Potions project in your education here at Hogwarts, I will entrust you to the use of every store - including my own private store, should I happen to approve the item, your potion, and you." He turned his gaze to Malfoy, who smirked, turned to his two thick-skulled cronies, and nodded. "Many of our more recently developed potions in the wizarding world today were thought up here in this potions room, and I would hope that the time I have given-" At this some of the students rolled their eyes. He had given them three weeks! What more could they ask for? "And I would hope that with the time I have given, you have met up to the requirements of this potion to be useful to every aspect of the wizarding world, and to already prepare for it being published and issued, so do not. Mess. Up."  
  
Severus took in a breath, enjoying the looks of absolute horror on most of the students' faces. They should have taken this Potions assignment more seriously. He had basically already given this speech at the beginning of term; they were all fully aware of what they were getting into.  
  
"I would not advise any of you to rush your potion, to get it done with before the end of terms, to leave time for you to laze off," Or to show off, he mentally added. "For if the case does arise, I will assign you tedious potions I need done until the end of terms." With this mentioned he turned to Granger, and she looked a bit miffed at her being singled out. "Likewise do not draw out your potion making. I shall check each potion individually, put them through tests, and I will be able to tell if they could have been made in a day or two instead of a few months," He looked around the students, seeing some looking very disappointed, one of which was Malfoy.  
  
He turned his back to the students, and made his way to his desk. He turned back and unfolded his arms, placing his hands flat on the desktop. He leaned forwards slightly, staring each student in the eye. "You may all begin."  
  
~*~  
  
Hermione made her way down the corridor, brushing past students, one hand holding her bag to her side, the other up on her chest, unintentionally protecting her Head Girl badge.  
  
"Hermione! Hermione! Could you possibly walk any faster? Lunch won't run away!"  
  
Hermione turned her head slightly, not slowing her pace.  
  
"Why must you two walk so slow? I don't want to waste any time that I could spend studying for the-" She stopped at the top of the staircase, which she was not prepared for, and wobbled slightly at the edge of the step. A tug behind her kept her from tumbling down the stairs, and the voice to the person grabbing the back of her robe spoke up.  
  
"Hermione, you know as well as we do that you are going to get the best grade on the Potions Project, and yet you are ten times as worried as the rest of us! Lighten up, and at least walk five miles per hour slower down to the Great Hall." Harry steadied the things in his hand and began walking down the stairs, fixing his glasses and trying to pat down his black disheveled hair.  
  
Hermione sighed, looked back at Ron, who was still taking his leisure walking across the corridor. She gave him a look and began bounding down the stairs.  
  
"You know what I don't get though?" Ron said suddenly, as he joined Harry and Hermione for lunch. "How on earth did Neville get something together?" He looked between his two friends. "I mean, I am sure Neville is fully capable," He looked around the table for Neville. "But I just don't see the sense. It can't possibly be a very good potion- I never saw him down at the library looking things up or studying down in the common for it or anything," Ron grabbed some things and put them on his plate, and hastily began to fork them into his mouth.  
  
Harry looked at Hermione. "You wouldn't have helped him with this, would you, Hermione?" He narrowed his eyes. "Because I strictly remember professor Snape telling us we were forbidden to share ideas or anything of the sort with other classmates - they had to be our own creations. And I remember Snape staring specifically at you and Neville when saying so, too."  
  
"True, that is," Ron said hastily, pointing his fork at Hermione, bits of food flying from his mouth. "If Neville's potion even so much as slightly sounds possible or even thinks about working, Snape'll know you've helped him with it." He swallowed. "That greasy git might even go as far as to keep you from passing, should he even slightly suspect you had anything to do with it."  
  
Hermione shifted in her seat, and looked at her friends uncomfortably. "Professor Dumbledore wouldn't let him do such a thing, especially not to me," She puffed out her chest, and looked fondly down at her badge. "Dumbledore would know that Snape would just be trying to mess with things." She poked at her food, and went back to reading her potion notes.  
  
"So you did help Neville then!" Ron sputtered. "Hermione, you should've left him to himself on this one. If he passes potions, it will be all you - and he will have done almost nothing. Not that he has really done anything these seven years. You're always there, whispering hints to him and such." Ron trailed off and scrunched his nose.  
  
Harry turned to Hermione. "Why did you go so far as to completely make up a new potion for Neville to use? That must've been loads of work, having to look up everything for two potions." He put a fork full of food in his mouth.  
  
Hermione turned her gaze from Harry to her plate, which was untouched. "Well, I wasn't going to tell anyone, because I didn't want it getting around, and risk getting in trouble, but, I did basically give up an entire potions work to Neville. all he has to do is follow the instructions and write down exactly what he does."  
  
Ron put down his fork and looked incredulously at Hermione.  
  
She put her papers down in her lap. "Well! Let me explain. See, I read about the fountain of youth over this summer, and immediately my interest was sparked in the area. So I developed a potion to try and create bottled youth. I knew we were going to this project this year from past seventh years, and I wanted to be prepared. But then earlier this school year, I came upon a brilliant discovery - based upon the knowledge I have gotten from studying muggle sciences and chemistry over the summers, I came up with the idea to bring atoms together under extreme heat and pressure through special ingredients to isolate molecules and fuse them back together under different formations to create gold and-"  
  
Hermione stopped and looked at the looks of absolute confusion on her friends' faces. She coughed and resumed.  
  
"Well, anyways, I came upon a better potion, and I didn't want to use my youth potion anymore. But I couldn't bare to just discard it for the moment, and Neville came to me for help, as he knew he would need it for the Potions project, and so I let him borrow it." Hermione coughed and breathed in deep, going back to reading her potion notes.  
  
Ron blinked after a minute, and turned his head again towards Hermione. "Well, Harry, I don't know about you, but I didn't catch a word of that. And nor do I want to. I shall content myself with the fact that Hermione cheated on this Potions project, and will get the best grade of all."  
  
Harry chewed thoughtfully, and twirled his fork on his plate, like there was invisible spaghetti mounded on it. "Herm, tell us about the youth potion idea. If it works, will it be like, 'take a sip and become a year younger'? You could make so much money off of that if it worked."  
  
Hermione sighed and looked up from her potion notes again. "Well," she started, looking Harry in the eye, but not clearly seeing him. She thought back to her notes she had taken on the youth potion, and. "It wasn't my purpose for the potion to permanently keep the drinker young, but rather to have them become young and only stay that way for an hour, or up to a week, or month, depending on the conditions of the brew. The youth potion is supposed to work as follows: When seven milliliters are taken orally (having been stewed for a month, with ten lacewings, stirred to the right), the drinker should appear one year younger. 14 milliliters, two years. They will retain their knowledge, and not forget anything at all, but the memories of the years taken away would seem more dream like. So, for instance, if you took a swig, Harry, right now, and you became sixteen, everything that has happened for the past year you would still remember, any new spells you learned would still be accessible, but you would feel sixteen, look sixteen, act sixteen, be sixteen - but mentally, you are seventeen." Hermione sighed and looked back down to her notes.  
  
She looked back up at Ron, whose mouth was slightly open. She gave him a questioning look.  
  
"Hermione?" He said unbelievingly. "How on earth do you think these things up?"  
  
"It's magic, Ron." She said bluntly, and looked irritated (but somewhat complimented) back down to her notes.  
  
"So when would the person be snapped out of the potion?" Harry questioned, once more interrupted Hermione's study.  
  
"I told you - it is different, depending on how you stew it. If you took one years worth, to take you back a year, it could only last for a day, or up to a year. So if you took it, you could be seventeen today, sixteen tomorrow, and then seventeen the next day. Or sixteen for a week, and then after a week, you wake up seventeen. Or sixteen for a month, and wake up seventeen. Or sixteen for a year, and wake up seventeen - but in the case it lasts a whole year, it would indeed be a true youth potion, because it would have stopped your physical deterioration for a year. So when you should be eighteen you are only seventeen." Hermione stopped to ponder her logic for a moment, to explain the potion in the simplest way possible - if it was possible. "But in the case someone takes a gulp that makes them look twenty years younger, and the potion is to last for a year, or to last for twenty years. I did not look that far into it, because of so many complications, but as far as I figured, when I was researching possibilities, anything over so many years would just act like a youth potion. so you take twenty years worth, boom, your twenty years younger, no going back." Hermione hoped she sounded as clear as it was in her head, but the looks she received told her otherwise.  
  
She sighed.  
  
"I promise you, you shall come to understand it, when the need arises."  
  
They took this with content, and Ron looked back up at Hermione.  
  
"You know, I did mostly understand that," He said proudly, stuffing more food in his mouth.  
  
"Well, that is great and everything, but could you two please let me to my studying now?" She sighed impatiently, and looked down for the last time at her potion notes.  
  
~*~  
  
WELL, ok, I hoped that is enough to suffice. I promise though, for future reference, if anything is unclear, it will become clear. In the unfortunate case it does not make itself clear to you later on through the story, please put your question in a review and I will do my best to answer questions. Hopefully for now there is none.  
  
My chappies are never shorter then five pages - if you know my stories at all, they are ALWAYS ten pages or more, to keep the reader interested. But I am afraid that this is just the intro, and I want response.  
  
And not that I am complaining, but I realize that stories that are usually crappily written, really short, all sex and no plot, usually have more admirers and reviews then my stories tend to have. ( I get sad sometimes. So please review and tell me if you want me to continue with this over suspenseful plot (lol) and even if you don't more will come.  
  
OK -- byebyes!  
  
| | | \/ (review please!) 


	2. Chapter two

Potions Master Down  
  
~*~  
  
By Mae Noelle  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer -- I don't own a thing. In this story. Nope, though it is brilliantly written to fool you all, this actually belongs to a more brilliant author, JKR, to whom I am indebted with my life. All praise JKR!  
  
Summary -- Yes, my gosh, this IS just waaay too cliché. Cute, but cliché. I won't tell you any of the particulars, as I add my own twists and particularly grammatically correct things to this. (not to mention I add proper punctuation! And spelling!! Woot! Aren't you just exciiited!!) But, it is a cute romance story, between. drum roll, please.. Hermione and Sevvie! Yes! If you are surprised, and did not come to this story by putting in 'Hermione' and 'Severus' in the matching couple boxes, then don't worry - this ain't one of the usual Herm/Sev fics. This one happy- fies all couple-goers. All the Sev/Herm people like it, cause it is Sev/Herm. And people that don't like Sev/Herm don't like it because he is an old, greasy middle aged professor, and she is a bushy haired grade school know it all. (Just kidding! Really!) So everyone will be happy by this one. And if you know me, I love, love, love bringing Snape and Hermione together under the weirdest of circumstances, so you can be sure it is good.  
  
Authors Note -- Weeee!!!! I think this is the quickest I think I have ever finish one chapter, and then actually go straight to the next - and actually start and do more then one paragraph in the next chapter! Two chapters in one day! Go me! Go me!! Not posted on the same day, of course, but. Go Ducky, my bestest muse, who hasn't done ANYTHING so far to this story, (my best present from her yet!)  
  
-- Few months later, btw. Four, five, six? Half way through the year! Yah! Sounds good to me.  
  
~*~  
  
Chapter two  
  
~*~  
  
Hermione dropped the last of her vinegar roots into her potion, and was careful to not stir up the stationary liquid in her hot red cauldron.  
  
She looked down fondly at her sparkling green potion, where she hoped that perfect little golden nuggets were almost done forming.  
  
With one last look at her potion (willing to reach down into it to see if it was working, but held herself back with the hellish vision of her grade being whittled away if she were to interfere with her potion), she went to the parchments laying on her desk, and began to jot down her final notes regarding the forming of the potion and times and such.  
  
After finishing her notes, she took out all her pieces of parchments and notes, and began to organize them in the fashion in which they were to be turned in.  
  
She leafed through her notes again and again, and finally getting tired of doing so, pushed them aside and sat down, her head lying in her right palm, elbows resting on the table, and began to drum her fingers. Someone snorted beside her.  
  
Hermione sighed and looked over to see Ron, who was watching Hermione in her state of boredom. 'Must be nice!' he mouthed, before returning grudgingly to his tedious potion (which was actually very easy, Hermione thought, as she had looked over his notes).  
  
Finally deciding she was ready, Hermione took up her parchments and walked up to the front of the large, dark, and musty room.  
  
The Professor was idly messing with bottles of liquids, and constantly referring to a large piece of parchment, where deep green, scrawled words were written. He was clearly ignoring the girl, and continued hunched over his mini lab.  
  
Hermione cleared her throat. Professor Snape didn't look up, but he sighed heavily and set down his bottles, and growled, "What is it, Miss Granger?"  
  
She placed the stack of parchments in front of her and moved them towards the professor, hoping to draw his eye upwards, and said slowly, "Well, I am quite finished with my potion, I believe, and wondered if you needed my notes and reports for your grading. And how soon you will have the potions graded and turned back to me?"  
  
Professor Snape looked up, his temper clearly cut short, and sneered slightly. "Miss Granger, first done, of course. Yes, well, give me those," With that he snatched the parchments from her hand and placed them in an unoccupied drawer of his, and folded his arms over his chest. "And if you are indeed completely finished with your potion, you may leave it where it is and I will tend to it after class. As for the grading - I will take my time, and you may not get your grades back until the end of the marking period, when everyone else will be getting grades." He unfolded his arms and looked back down at his potions, and began reading the parchment again.  
  
Hermione stood still, feeling unbelievably awkward, but intent on asking her final question.  
  
The professor noticed, but hoped she would leave if he ignored her long enough. He waited another minute, and gave up in exasperation.  
  
"What is it, Miss Granger?" He said, a bit loudly even for his own tastes.  
  
She shrank back a bit, and said timidly, "I was wondering, regarding the potions I am to do for the rest of the year, -"  
  
He sighed and put his head into his hands. Waving his hand back towards the desks he said "Just go, and whenever a potion arises to be made, you will be given the directions and it will go from there." His muffled voice sounded exasperated, and even in his tired state Hermione got the feeling that if she didn't leave that moment, he would burst out and hex her to death.  
  
Turning around, she barely caught Ron dropping something into his potion (which he undoubtedly shouldn't have, she thought, after seeing his reaction to dropping it) and Neville turning to smile at her, while stirring his potion to the left. Hermione just smiled and went back to her seat, and sat and admired her perfect potion, hearing more then one 'Oops' from her neighbors.  
  
~*~  
  
Severus walked down to the dungeons, reaching the tall doors of his potions room, and quickly fitted in his key and said his incantation (added security) and billowed hastily into the room. There was much to grade and no time in which to do it.  
  
When he first entered the room, the first thing he noticed was a low buzzing sound.  
  
The first thing he saw being Grangers finished potions project, he assumed that was making the noise, (either that or he was hearing things) and dismissed it.  
  
He made his way to where he had stored the notes she had given him, and quickly skimmed through them to the part where it informed of the end result of the complete potion. He glided over her cauldron, and leaned over slightly to see inside. Deep green. Slight shimmer. When complete, translucent to some degree, and dark shapes will be seen latched to the bottom of the cauldron - the gold.  
  
He looked in the cauldron again and scoffed. It wasn't translucent yet, so she was wrong - it wasn't finished. Now he would have to wait here until he could see the gold, which might take forever, if at all.  
  
All through this he noticed the buzzing of the room fluctuating, which irritated him greatly. He began walking back to his desk, to begin grading some first years' papers, when he realized the buzzing was growing louder while he walked further from the potion that was supposedly making the noise.  
  
He looked back down at the notes of Grangers he held in his hand. He flipped to the end, and skimmed for anything that would have to do with sounds. There wasn't any information on the subject. Surely know-it-all Granger wouldn't leave it out? No - she was complete in everything she did. If her notes said her potion didn't buzz, then it didn't buzz.  
  
Slightly alarmed, Severus walked towards the sound, realizing it was coming from the front of the room. He stopped and realized the buzzing belonged to the cauldron of Neville Longbottom.  
  
That buzzing could not be good.  
  
He tore for his desk, and rifled through mounds of parchments that were messily organized throughout his little area, until he came upon the stack of Potions Project reports, from the seventh years, which were an overall view of their potions. Severus quickly found the one for Longbottom, and scanned through it for any hint as to the buzzing  
  
He looked throughout the parchment a dozen times, but nothing at all was mentioned. Surely a loud buzzing noise would be mentioned somewhere if it were a necessity to the potion.  
  
Yet, it was not.  
  
Severus sighed and wished he had the documenting of ingredients added to Longbottom's potion, so Severus could at least foretell the outcome of the potion, or do something to stop it.  
  
Knowing none of the needed details of the idiots potion (which immediately made Severus want to run up to Gryffindor tower and somehow get them, for his own safe keeping - and then strangle Longbottom while he was up there), Severus quickly read over Longbottom's essay again.  
  
The logic of his mind was telling him to run out of the room at that very second, but he found that he couldn't move, and he suddenly noticed he was very tired.  
  
He momentarily closed his eyes, and let his head rest on his hand. He sighed again, but not from frustration. He opened his eyes again, and looked in the direction of the door, and thought again to himself, 'I should get out of this bloody room right now.'  
  
He closed his eyes again and let arms fold over his desk and over the many parchments, and his head fell lazily into his arms.  
  
Before long, he was out cold. And in front of him, there was a splash, and buzzing came to an abrupt stop.  
  
~*~  
  
Oh my GOSH! Did I just leave a cliffie? I have been practicing in the fine art of cliff-making for the past few years, and I think I have yet to make one that actually enthralls the public into leaping up to the next chapter to find out what happens.  
  
So, tell me what you think! Again, yes. this was incredibly short. but, if you have read any of my other stories, you realize that if I make it lots longer, you get longer chapters (duh), but only once every few months or whatever. Plus they will get longer. I am just in a hurry to get to the goods, so the intro chappies are a bit shorter then what we would like. I believe in my story Messing With History, I have only done a chapter every two months - and am now due for the next one (I am almost done writing it, too!!) And so for this story you can expect lots more chapters and updates.  
  
Hope you liked! Tell me what you think! Tell my muse ideas! Just please, do something that involves pressing the review button! 


	3. Chapter three

Potions Master Down  
  
~*~  
  
By Mae Noelle  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer -- I don't own a thing. In this story. Nope, though it is brilliantly written to fool you all, this actually belongs to a more brilliant author, JKR, to whom I am indebted with my life. All praise JKR!  
  
Summary -- You must understand the summary by now. Sev/Herm, cute & cliché, distorted and I hope to have suspense, horror, romance, tragedy, humor, romance, adventure, action, humor, parody, humor, and humor (what else is on the list? Oh, yah, mystery. Hope to have mystery, too). All you will get probably is some drama and my own distorted romance. I am sorry. @_@  
  
Authors Note -- three chapters in three days! Wow, I am amazing sometimes. *looks around to anyone who would say otherwise, and absentmindedly fingers her 33mm*  
  
No amazing story notes I can think of as of yet, sorry. Confused about anything? Just wait a bit, it will probably work itself out. If it doesn't, then review me your question and I shall answer. Weee! Now, let the adventure begin! ^_^  
  
~*~  
  
Chapter three  
  
~*~  
  
Harry sat down for dinner in his usual spot next to Ron near the middle of the Gryffindor table. Hermione followed close behind and sat on the other side of the table, across from Harry, and she unintentionally slammed her things down onto floor beside her.  
  
"I can not believe that we didn't have potions today!" Ron said loudly, grabbing things hastily to put onto his plate, knocking the pile of potatoes over and sending them rolling down the table.  
  
"You would think this a godsend for you, Ron," Hermione said airily, mad herself at having missed the chance to make potions that day, but was more intent on what caused their professor to skip class that day and leave the class standing outside the door for two hours.  
  
"Why, it is, but the fact remains that now my potion is probably ruined thanks to that damn git," Ron yelled, blindly stabbing his fork into whatever lay in front of him. "I bet he did this just to ruin us all, and have us all fail potions!"  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes and grabbed a potato that had made its way in front of her plate. "I am glad I did finish my potion, though. It would have been disastrous had I missed a day on adding my ingredients." She forked her potato onto her plate and reached over to grab some salt.  
  
"Well, I am glad my potion is so versatile," Harry said slowly, poking his food. "But I wonder what happened to Snape? It must have been important, to call him away from class like that, as he never missed potions before-"  
  
"Except during the Wizarding War," Hermione interrupted.  
  
"D-do you think this has something to do with You-know-who, then?" Ron dropped his fork and instinctually moved closer to the table and Harry.  
  
Hermione and Harry both gave Ron withering looks.  
  
"Ron, you know Voldemorts gone," Harry said, earning a few looks from around him. Voldemort was still a touchy subject.  
  
"Don't say the name!" Ron hissed, and looked around fervently. "Yes, I know he's gone, but I am sure not all his followers are," He picked back up his fork. "Perhaps Dumbledore had to send Snape in to clean up, or something,"  
  
"Professor Dumbledore wouldn't make Professor Snape do that during the day unless it was very important, and surely they would have at least brought in a substitute professor." Hermione eyed the head table, where the empty chair between Professors Dumbledore and Sprout stood out most of all, and not only to herself.  
  
Plates were in the process of being emptied and people were all about ready to go on up to their commons when Professor Dumbledore stood up and motioned for all to listen.  
  
Dumbledore folded his arms and they disappeared under his shinning navy blue robe, and he tilted his head down and waited for the students to become quiet.  
  
"As I am sure you have all noticed," He began, and any noise still evident among the crowd evaporated. "Professor Snape has been detained. And as this private urgency has taken away your Potions Master, I am afraid that potions will have to be postponed until further notice, much to your disappointment, I am sure." Here he smiled, and his eyes twinkled from behind his half-moon glasses. He was looking out to too many happy faces, concerning the dreadful matter.  
  
After a moment he sat down, and there was a rush of scraping of chairs to get out of the great hall and spread the gossip.  
  
"Of course he tells us now," Ron muttered, throwing down his fork and getting up from his chair. "Right after we stand for hours waiting to get into potions,"  
  
~*~  
  
Severus' eyes flew open, and the first thing he did was to shut them again as the light and images came flooding into his view.  
  
Someone was prodding and poking his arm. Finally it stopped, and Severus felt the edge of unconsciousness coming to envelop him, when suddenly he felt a cold, sharp pain slicing through his body. That damned someone had just jabbed a needle in his arm!  
  
He opened his eyes again, and swatted away the person torturing him, and after hearing the person gasp, and blurrily seeing the person dash away, he closed his eyes and went peacefully back to sleep.  
  
What felt like two seconds later he felt himself being awoken again, much to his misery.  
  
"Severus?"  
  
He opened one of his eyes. Why, that sounds like Albus, he said groggily to himself.  
  
Trying to focus in the images of the heads floating over him, the person to his right repeated, yet more softly, "Severus? Are you fully awake? Can you hear me?"  
  
He focused his vision enough to clearly distinguish each person from the other, and to see that the person speaking to him was indeed Albus Dumbledore.  
  
Albus turned slightly to the person next to him, Madame Pomfrey, and whispered something to her.  
  
Severus, thinking Pomfrey might do something drastic should she believe him to not be conscious yet, quickly made to sit up, and said feverently, "Do not trouble yourselves, I am awake and fine."  
  
But before he could move his body into a sitting position, Pomfrey seized him by the arms and was pushing him forcibly back onto the hospital bed.  
  
"Professor Snape you shall NOT be getting out of this bed until I have made CERTAIN you are in a fit enough condition to be back wandering about the halls, do you hear me?"  
  
Minerva and Albus shrank back slightly at the sound of the woman's outburst, along with Severus himself. Severus looked to his side quickly, and saw that only those four were in the infirmary at the moment.  
  
Severus found himself complying against his wishes, and stayed in the position he was put in, though he felt his anger emanating from himself and put a scowl on his face, just to show his impatience with the woman and her silly ways.  
  
He turned to Albus, whose smiling eyes hid his laughter. Snape furrowed his brows and shot Pomfrey a look before questioning the headmaster.  
  
"Would anyone mind telling me exactly what is going on? The last thing I can remember is being in the dungeons looking over the seventh year's Potions Projects and such, and then-" Snape's voice faltered as he remembered that idiot boys faulty potion. what could it have done?  
  
"What exactly did happen, Severus?" Albus said calmly, seating himself on a chair next to the bed. "All we know is that the students complained of you not coming to potions one day, and though we tried to contact you, you wouldn't answer. So we forced our way in, and found the Potions room a mess." Albus leaned back in his chair and folded his hands, and dropped them in his lap. "And you, curiously enough, where lying asleep on your desk - and -" the headmaster looked over at the desk he was next to, where a small wooden framed mirror lay, and he turned back to Severus. "Well, we shall get to that part later. Anyway, we found a sort of gas in the air, set off, I believe, by the potions that were in your class at the moment. I do believe some of the gasses combined to form - what was it? oh, yes - Carbon Monoxide." Here he looked over to Minerva, who nodded. "Fortunately, there was not enough of that to kill you-" Here someone coughed- "But you seemed to have fallen asleep sometime before your entire classroom was dismantled."  
  
Minerva walked forward a bit, and out of her pocket she took a blue little vile. "Something odd, though, Severus, was that all the things in your room weren't destroyed, but they were - I don't know quite how to describe it - new, I assume. Things were knocked over, and some things a bit broken, yes, but everything was shiny and clean, and I am happy to say, your dirty room finally had a wash job." She dropped the blue vile into Severus' lap.  
  
Severus thought for a moment about going back to his dingy Potions room, only to find it sparkling clean and smelling like pine.  
  
"What exactly were the potions in your possession, Severus?" Minerva asked cautiously, watching Severus finger the vile.  
  
"Grangers potion, one that is supposed to make gold, and Longbottoms. which is. a. youth potion." Severus stopped moving. He closed his eyes for a minute, and prayed to whatever was listening hoping that that damn idiot didn't screw him up too bad.  
  
"Ah! Well! That settles that!" Albus leaned over and grabbed the small wooden-framed mirror on the desk by the handle, and handed it over to Severus. "Here, take a look."  
  
Severus looked a moment at the mirror, and then took it from the hands of the headmaster. The wooden side was facing him. After a moment of unfathomable worry he turned over the mirror and looked hesitantly into it.  
  
His first thought was, 'why, nothing is wrong at all - what are they trying to pull?' but then he turned back to the mirror and stared. He felt his mouth drop open, and he turned the mirror to and fro.  
  
"Dear God!" He exclaimed, and dropped the mirror.  
  
"Severus, it looks like you just walked in from getting your Potions Master Degree," Minerva said quietly, and turned to look at Albus. "I would say twenty something years have just been knocked off."  
  
"Not quite so bad a loss, though, is it?" Albus said, smiling.  
  
"But we don't know if that is the only effect of the gasses!" Madame Pomfrey said quickly, and took the liberty to push back Severus, who was slowly making his way up to a sitting position. "He could die tomorrow!"  
  
"I am not stupid," Severus sneered. He could not ever remember disliking this woman so much. "I would not even think about giving Longbottom any two ingredients that could somehow add together and become lethal in any way."  
  
"But still! The things that could be happening inside you at this moment! We must begin testing at once, and not stop until we are completely satisfied."  
  
"I can be tested easily enough from a far." Severus growled, and picked back up the little blue vile. He studied it for a minute before saying, "I don't remember having any blue containers whatsoever," he looked closely at it, before dropping it back onto the sheets.  
  
"Yes, well, that is because everything in that room - including you - became not only newer (or younger), but blue." Albus coughed slightly and looked away.  
  
Severus stared.  
  
"BUT as you can see, we have fixed that easily enough (just look down at yourself), and you will soon see that there is almost nothing in your room which is not the right color." Minerva said quickly, seeing Severus' astonished and borderline horrified look.  
  
"Since I can not get out of here myself," Severus said slowly, turning his glare once more to Pomfrey, "Could someone be so kind as to get to me Longbottoms notes and reports?" He sneered and turned to Albus. "I need to see all the ingredients and how he added them - I will need to be quick in finding out if this potion wares out at all or if an antidote is even possible-"  
  
"One step ahead of you!" Albus said, raising his hand to the desk again, this time bringing forth a stack of ill-kept parchments. "The notes regarding Neville Longbottoms Potions project." He said, handing them over to Severus.  
  
Severus quickly snatched them (politely) from his hands, and began to quickly read through the notes.  
  
Albus coughed and leaned towards Severus slightly. "And I took the liberty of checking how to bring about an antidote for the potion noted here, and any effects of it,"  
  
Severus lowered the papers slightly, and slowly turned his head toward Albus, who was sitting still and silent.  
  
Likewise everyone else in the room turned their gaze to Albus.  
  
"I wasn't informed of this," Minerva said quickly, looking slightly angry.  
  
Albus smiled slightly to himself, and leaned forward to take the papers out of Severus' hand. He picked out a piece of parchment in the back, which held notes of his own.  
  
"I am afraid," Albus said slowly, looking over the parchment with a swift glance. "That my hope of this being a temporary spell is in vain. Indeed, you look just as you did when you came into the infirmary - over a week ago. And -" Here Severus was leaning so far over that Pomfrey had made her way over to him and pushed him back against the bed. Albus looked on in amusement and continued, "And, I am afraid Mister Longbottom did not document his Potions making correctly, for the potion had obviously gone astray. The results of this documented potion would be very different from the results of the one that you came in contact with. And we have not had luck in finding out exactly how the potion was made, to create an antidote (should you want one.)." At that Albus winked.  
  
The chances that the potion was easily reversible or temporary were very good - leave it to Longbottom to completely screw up everything. Severus sighed and closed his eyes.  
  
"Of course, now that you're with us, you will be able to help. Why, they do not call you Potions Master for nothing." Albus smiled warmly down to his now-young friend, and placed the parchments onto the desk, making to stand.  
  
"Of course only after we have made sure he is-"  
  
"Yes, yes, of course," Albus said, smiling again, "We would not dream of taking away your patient until you have taken the necessary precautions."  
  
Severus looked at Albus, and tried his best to give off a pleading look.  
  
Albus just stared forward, refusing to catch his eye, and said with a yawn, "Good-bye for now, Severus, I hope the next time we meet I will have the answer for the potion, or at least some better news."  
  
Minerva followed closely behind Albus, and waved slightly to Severus, before looking back to Pomfrey with an odd expression on her face.  
  
Madame Pomfrey just smiled slightly, and took out from a cabinet on the other side of the infirmary a large bottle of green liquid, and what Severus supposed was the needle he had been last pricked with.  
  
He slinked back on his bed and shook his head slightly. "Pomfrey, you know as well as I do that these precautions are unnecessary! A waste of your recourses, and, what is infinitely worse, my time," She just got out little viles and a tray, and began making her way over to him. "I can just as well figure out for myself what is wrong, and I will do a better job, in not even a fraction of the time. In fact, I think I even know a spell that can determine in thirty seconds if there is any after effect of a potion within a mile of myself,"  
  
Pomfrey raised an eyebrow. "Why, Severus, I do believe those are some of the same excuses the students use on a daily basis. Are you sure you don't just look younger? Because I do believe you are acting as though you were not even one-and-twenty,"  
  
"I am sure my outward appearance of age is over twenty-one," Severus felt his eyes widen as she primped her needle and got out a spoon, a large spoon, an almost-as-big-as-her-head spoon, in which she put steaming green liquid. He had always heard of the excruciating tests this insane woman put people through.  
  
"Don't worry, it is not as bad as it looks. I do believe we could be over with these tests in under a week if you behave properly and comply with the tests. If not, they could take up to a month." She said slowly, raising the spoon and smiling. "Open wide!"  
  
~*~  
  
Wee! There ya go, more to come. Wow, this stuff is just pouring out of me! I have never written so fast in my life, I do believe. These shorter chapters are definitely working for me, though, so lets keep 'em that way. More for you, less for me! Woot!  
  
Suggestions? Comments? Questions? Flames? Compliments? Suggestions? Unbelievably stupid grammar or spelling or other mistakes? Please, write to me in a review, or do something in a review, or flame me or do whatever. But please review! I am feeling very lonely right now. My bestest muse Ducky seems to have disappeared off the earth all together, and I might have to just post without her help. Dear God, how will I cope?! 


	4. Chapter four

Potions Master Down  
  
~*~  
  
By Mae Noelle  
  
~*~  
  
Disclaimer -- I don't own a thing. In this story. Nope, though it is brilliantly written to fool you all, this actually belongs to a more brilliant author, JKR, to whom I am indebted with my life. All praise JKR!  
  
Summary -- Do you people still need a summary review?! Ok, I can do that! Sevvie becomes cute and yoooung, and Hermione is there to help, and they are cute together, so they are together. Not that I am giving away the plot story line or anything like that or whatever. @_@  
  
No amazing story notes I can think of as of yet, sorry. Confused about anything? Just wait a bit, it will probably work itself out. If it doesn't, then review me your question and I shall answer.  
  
. Ah, actually. I have taken to watching all of Jane Austin's novels-made- into-movies, especially Pride and Prejudice, the five or so hours long one with Colin Firth (Damn he's HOT). I have watched P&P SO many times you have absolutely NO idea. I have started speaking Old English I am afraid, and it may be incorporated a bit too much into my writing. I don't know. At the moment I am too much into the Old English thing right now that I could not possibly tell if I am doing it or not, so you will have to be the judge. I am sorry if it is really odd to you, but to me this story sounds normal. But, Old English would be a better language for this story then ghetto- American-slang, no? All of which I can speak. Um, ok, go on with the story now.  
  
~*~  
  
Chapter four  
  
~*~  
  
"Do you think we will have potions this week?" Ron asked timidly, while he, Harry, and Hermione walked down to breakfast.  
  
"I don't think so, Ron," Harry said, for the millionth time in the past two weeks. "And if so, we will probably be notified the day before, and I wouldn't know now anyway, so stop asking."  
  
"Well, I hope not, because I really need that extra two hours for our Herbology homework. Good thing we have all today and Sunday, I thought we would never get to the weekend. I haven't done any of that report yet." Here Ron looked over to where Hermione was quietly walking. "Hermione?" He said sweetly, widening his eyes and smiling.  
  
"No, Ron."  
  
"You haven't even heard what I was going to ask. And let me say it now; You see, since you gave Neville a complete potions project, I don't see how you could be in the wrong by giving me a measly piece of parchment to copy from for my report - I won't copy it completely, I will reword everything to at least make it look like I tried. And, I am your best frie-"  
  
"Ron, if you do NOT stop asking me for homework, I will hex you so that you can not even do it yourself." Hermione turned to glare at him, and then look in frustration at Harry. Harry just shrugged.  
  
"At least I will then have a reason for not turning it in," Ron said happily, somehow unable to be put out of his good mood, which was motivated due to not having seen Snape for over a fortnight. "So do you guys think that Snape really is an animagus, and finally got fed up with this school and flew away one night?" He said excitedly, turning to Harry.  
  
"Ron, that rumor came from Parvati Patil, you do remember, the same person the rumor of 'Snape running away with a muggle woman' originated from? You can not possibly believe that," Harry sighed. "And besides. I do not think he can get fed up with taking points away from us and laughing in our faces and scaring us in the halls. it's what he lives for."  
  
"Well I should think he would, and I will keep on hoping it. Just think, Harry, Hermione, Snape gone forever! Can you imagine? Damn those lucky first years - to have only had to deal with him for half their first year!" Ron sighed again, his eyes glazed over, and continued starring at some point in front of them with his eyes unfocused.  
  
"Well I should hope he comes back soon," Hermione said quickly. "I can't think about what would happen if I didn't get my N.E.W.T. for Potions! And if only Professor Snape wasn't so. rude, Potions would be my favorite class, apart from Ancient Runes and Arithmancy." Hermione wrapped her arms around her books tightly. "And I do want to see what grade Professor Snape gives my potion. He can't possibly grade it bad, even though he would want to, because if it does work (which it will, of course) then it shall be one of the biggest break-throughs of the Modern Wizarding World! Money doesn't grow on trees - but in cauldrons!" She savored these last words and sighed.  
  
"And you will of course share this wealth with your friends, Hermione?" Ron said hopefully, thinking to himself of finally being rich, and his first trip would be to buy the land on which the Malfoy's manner lay on, and bulldoze over their house.  
  
Hermione sighed. "Yes, yes, of course. But you will have to work for it. I shall have to make you head potions maker, and you can work in a factory where they have a million cauldrons boiling, all making gold by my potion,"  
  
Ron looked disgruntled. "Work in a factory?" He mumbled.  
  
Harry looked from one of his friends to the other, and after a moment of silence finally said, "So, what do you think really happened to Snape then?"  
  
They came to the doors of the Great Hall, and made their way in and to the Gryffindor table, where they sat down and grabbed themselves some breakfast.  
  
"I'm starvin'!" Ron said loudly, sitting down quickly and grabbing five of everything. "Oh, and as for Snape, I don't care what's true as long as he doesn't come back - at least until the end of the year."  
  
At that moment Ron turned and waved as he saw his sister eating down at the end of the table. She looked incredibly excited, and when she saw her brother and his friends, she jumped up from the table and ran over to where Hermione was sitting and sat next to her.  
  
Everyone exchanged greeting, and Ginny looked from Ron to Harry to Hermione multiple times, before finally squealing and saying slowly,  
  
"Ok - Just so you know, what I am about to tell you I have told no one - well, except for Colin and a few other people, but - this is the truth, I am almost absolutely positive, as I heard it from Professor McGonagall while inside the closet-"  
  
"What were you doing in a closet?" Ron questioned, furrowing his eyebrows.  
  
"And I know it is true, so get ready for this, ok, now listen very carefully and-"  
  
"ALL RIGHT, Ginny, just tell us what it is," Hermione exploded, putting down her silverware and turning her body completely around to face Ginny. "Just tell us, in a calm and orderly manner, what it is you have to say."  
  
Ginny scoffed at Hermione and then turned back to the boys, and leaned into the table, and whispered, "All right - ok, listen, I over heard Professor McGonagall telling one of the other professors about Professor Snape - and all I heard her say was that he was stuck in the infirmary because of some explosion of some sort in the potions room, that left him changed (or something, I didn't quite catch that part). And Madame Pomfrey has him in there to do tests on him because there might be something seriously wrong with him, and he is getting out some time this week, and they have no clue what to do with him. Evidentially, this has all been caused because of Neville's Potion."  
  
She said this all very fast, and immediately got up and ran to a group of friends that were just entering the Great Hall.  
  
"I think this is what you call 'whiplash'," Ron said slowly, watching her animatedly tell something to her friends, (undoubtedly the rumor) who all were watching earnestly.  
  
"I wish she had stayed and reapeated it a few times," Harry said, also watching Ginny. "I don't think I quite caught all of that."  
  
"Well, lucky for you two, I did. Something has happened to Professor Snape, and he is in the infirmary - because of Neville's potion," Hermione sighed. "I think we had better go and see what is happening,"  
  
"Hermione," Ron started, putting down his fork. "I realize that the three of us have probably gotten away with more then this school will ever allow, and it is ok because we are who we are (and mostly because of Harry), but we can't just go up to the infirmary and ask to see the dismantled Snape (if you can even convince me that I care enough to see him), especially when almost no one in the school knows of the rumor. You know they are always finicky about how we always happen to know everything that no one else knows - they will probably end up thinking we did it."  
  
"I have a feeling everyone will know by the time we would be able to get to the infirmary." Harry said, following Ginny as she leapt from group of people to group of people, seeming to be telling the same animated story to each.  
  
"Well, Ron, we don't have to ask to go in-" Here Hermione smiled guiltily. "But this is probably all my fault -"  
  
"No, it is Neville's. Let's just leave the blame with him, and go on our merry way." Ron scowled. "And besides, even if you did give Neville the potion, why should we care about Snape in the slightest?"  
  
"And I might be able to help fix whatever is wrong." Hermione said, completely ignoring Ron.  
  
"No, you don't! Why can't you just leave things the way they are? Don't you want to have that extra two hours to study for other classes? Imagine how much more points in each you could get, Hermione! Instead of having a perfect 100% in one class, you could have 200%, or 300% ."  
  
Hermione turned and stared at Ron. She kept starring, her eyebrows straight and glare fixed, until Ron had to look away.  
  
"Well, Harry," Ron said quickly, shielding his eyes from Hermione's poisonous stare, "I am ready to visit the old git if you are,"  
  
~*~  
  
"Remind me again why we are going down there?" Ron whispered, walking a little too fast under the invisibility cloak and accidentally knocking it off of Harry, who was the slowest of the three.  
  
"Shut up, Ron!" Hermione hissed, as they made their way across the corridor and down the halls, on their way to the infirmary.  
  
They squished themselves together under the cloak, and walked in front of the door, and took turns peering in through the glass.  
  
"Can you see him? I can't see him," Ron whispered, trying to see in behind Hermione, who had her face pressed up against the window.  
  
"Do you honestly think they would place him right in front of the glass and put little signs and things? No, they undoubtedly have him hidden," Hermione looked around the infirmary with another quick glance.  
  
"Then what are we looking for?" Ron said, sighing and backing away from the window.  
  
"To see if anyone is in sight, for when we brake in." Harry whispered in reply, getting out his wand.  
  
"No-"  
  
"Yes, Hermione, that is what you said to me when we first came down, so don't-"  
  
"No! I mean, 'no', as in 'oh crap'!" She lifted her finger and pointed to something inside the infirmary.  
  
Inside a person had stood up and revealed himself from his hiding position, and was staring dead out into hallway - staring at them!  
  
"It's Dumbledore! No, no! He can see us, I know it, he has done so already, of course he happens to be the only one in there with Snape, of course, I knew this would happen-"  
  
"Ron! Shut up!" Hermione leaned forward and looked into the glass, where she saw Dumbledore lean over and say something to the person behind the curtain, and begin walking towards the door.  
  
"Oh, we are busted," Ron whined, "I can't get expelled now, not after I made it this far,"  
  
"We aren't getting expelled, Ron!" Harry sighed, and waved slightly, while smiling sadly, to Dumbledore, who was smiling wide. "The worst that could happen is we are taken down to zero house points, and we are already behind due to that spat Snape had last month. And maybe some detentions."  
  
"Yes, Harry is right, they wouldn't expel us, I am sure." Hermione motioned for the rest of them to scoot back, as Dumbledore was opening the door.  
  
" - Will get the ingredients to you, at least, by next week, should you not get out of this place before that." Dumbledore turned to where the trio was standing, and looked Hermione in the eye. He sort of jerked his head, motioning it to the room, and stepped away from the open door, leaving a curiously large amount of space in the doorway. "Well, good-night Severus, hope to see your tests finished as soon as possible, and you back out in the school. No doubt the students are worried about you."  
  
Harry had to cover his mouth to prevent himself from snorting aloud, and then realized that Dumbledore was referring to them, the three standing under an invisibility cloak after hours to get into the infirmary to see Snape. Hermione looked one last time at Dumbledore, who was obviously leaving a path for them to get in, and stood there idly for a minute as the three students inched their way into the room.  
  
Hermione kept her eyes on the ground, to make sure she didn't trip over the hem of the cloak or trod on anyone's feet, and stopped only when she heard the door close quietly behind her.  
  
She finally managed to look up when she was elbowed in the side. She tried to stuff her sleeve into her mouth to stifle her cry, but wasn't quick enough and her quiet yelp echoed in the quiet room. She looked murderously to her left, where Ron stood, a surprised and abashed look on his face.  
  
Hermione stood rigid, and looked to her right slightly, to see Harry mouth the words, 'Do not make a sound!'  
  
Unconsciously she looked forward again, and saw a young man leaning out over his bed, head and most of his torso visible behind the curtains halfway surrounding his bed. His black hair looked longer then it should have been, supposing that this person was indeed Professor Snape. In fact it looked as though he could tie back his hair with a band.  
  
His face looked like Snape's enough, yet there was something so decidedly different from it, that one second he looked identical to their old professor, yet at the same time completely different.  
  
Just as Hermione had predicted, the effects that the supposed potion had on Professor Snape were age-related, since the rumors said they had been caused by Neville's potion. Indeed, it looked as though Professor Snape had taken a large glass of the potion Hermione intended it to be. His skin seemed tighter and less aged, his features more soft yet still prominent - his eyes still seemed to be dark and ominous, not beady or large, but still the first feature that caught her eye - but she could not really compare them with the older Snape, as she had never truly looked into his eyes this way before.  
  
But supposing he had taken the potion a different way - and since Neville had obviously messed up the potion, what other effects had it had on the professor?  
  
She was suddenly nudged again, though not as hard, but from her right. Harry whispered almost silently in her ear,  
  
"Did you get what you came for? Can we leave yet?"  
  
Hermione just shook her head hurriedly in reply, and Harry turned to Ron and mouthed, 'Make for the door!'  
  
So they began scooting backwards, Hermione's attention still lingering on her potions professor, and how their mission to the Hospital wing was a complete failure-  
  
"All right - I know you're there, and if you do not present yourself, or yourselves, you will be in ten times as much trouble then you are in at this present moment!"  
  
Harry sighed softly, and Hermione looked down and realized that her shoe was slightly sticking out. She hurriedly covered it and they made a brake for the door. Harry had his hand on the handle, and was turning it slightly, when suddenly a loud booming voice echoed throughout the infirmary behind them.  
  
"POTTER!"  
  
Aye, that is definitely Snape then, Hermione thought.  
  
Harry immediately dropped his hand in shock and whispered furiously, "How does he always know?"  
  
~*~  
  
Ok, how did you like? Please tell me you liked it. I have never written so much so quickly, I am serious. I am so afraid of it just being a spur of the moment crap-like thing that I keep re-reading over this new story, to make sure it is ok. So far it is ok to me, so I hope everyone else likes it.  
  
Nothing special to say, except perhaps that Pride and Prejudice is probably the best, and I mean BEST cast movie in the world. I mean, I have never seen a movie in my life that had the actors fit the books characters so perfectly in my opinion. I love that book! And the movie! With Colin Firth, of course.  
  
Ok, now review any suggestions, comments, questions, flames, or just plain reviews of adoration. *^_^* Or not. just please tell me what you think. I can't stand writing and not having feed back. 


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